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Status of Plains Spadefoot in Alberta 1999

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Status of Plains Spadefoot in Alberta 1999 Status of the Plains Spadefoot (Spea bombifrons) in Alberta Richard D. Lauzon Alberta Wildlife Status Report No. 25 December 1999 Published By: i Publication No. T/496 ISBN: 0-7785-0920-6 ISSN: 1206-4912 Series Editor: Isabelle M. G. Michaud Senior Editor: David R. C. Prescott Illustrations: Brian Huffman For copies of this report, contact: Information Centre - Publications Alberta Environment Natural Resources Service Main Floor, Great West Life Building 9920 - 108 Street Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T5K 2M4 Telephone: (780) 422-2079 OR Information Service Alberta Environment #100, 3115 - 12 Street NE Calgary, Alberta, Canada T2E 7J2 Telephone: (403) 297-3362 OR Visit our website at: http://www.gov.ab.ca/env/fw/status/reports/index.html This publication may be cited as: Lauzon, R. D. 1999. Status of the Plains Spadefoot (Spea bombifrons) in Alberta. Alberta Environment, Fisheries and Wildlife Management Division, and Alberta Conservation Association, Wildlife Status Report No. 25, Edmonton, AB. 17 pp. ii PREFACE Every five years, the Fisheries and Wildlife Management Division of Alberta Natural Resources Service reviews the status of wildlife species in Alberta. These overviews, which have been conducted in 1991 and 1996, assign individual species to ‘colour’ lists that reflect the perceived level of risk to populations that occur in the province. Such designations are determined from extensive consultations with professional and amateur biologists, and from a variety of readily available sources of population data. A primary objective of these reviews is to identify species that may be considered for more detailed status determinations. The Alberta Wildlife Status Report Series is an extension of the 1996 Status of Alberta Wildlife review process, and provides comprehensive current summaries of the biological status of selected wildlife species in Alberta. Priority is given to species that are potentially at risk in the province (Red or Blue listed), that are of uncertain status (Status Undetermined), or which are considered to be at risk at a national level by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC). Reports in this series are published and distributed by the Alberta Conservation Association and the Fisheries and Wildlife Management Division of Alberta Environment, and are intended to provide detailed and up-to-date information which will be useful to resource professionals for managing populations of species and their habitats in the province. The reports are also designed to provide current information which will assist the Alberta Endangered Species Conservation Committee to identify species that may be formally designated as endangered or threatened under the Alberta Wildlife Act. To achieve these goals, the reports have been authored and/or reviewed by individuals with unique local expertise in the biology and management of each species. iii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Plains Spadefoot (Spea bombifrons) is currently on Alberta’s ‘Blue List’ of species that may be at risk of declining to non-viable population levels in the province. This nocturnal toad spends most of its time underground, only emerging to breed during favourable conditions or to feed. Observational records are therefore rare. This report reviews information on the Plains Spadefoot in Alberta, as a step in updating its status in the province. The Plains Spadefoot generally occurs in the plains of North America. The species reaches its northern range limit in Alberta where it occurs in the south-eastern portion of the province. There is no evidence to suggest that the range of the Plains Spadefoot is contracting. The lack of historical records makes it difficult to accurately assess population trends, but Alberta populations appear to be stable. The most important limiting factor for the Plains Spadefoot appears to be alteration and destruction of its habitat. However, basic information on the ecology of the species is necessary before the impacts of human use of its habitat can be fully assessed. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank Andrew Didiuk for providing his extensive literature database and comments on the draft report, Larry Powell and Cleve Wershler for their valuable comments on the draft report, and Isabelle Michaud for her editing skills and comments. I would also like to thank Howard Troughton who contacted numerous individuals in order to compile the data for the distribution map and was instrumental in the literature review process. I would like to thank the following individuals and organizations who contributed locality information, natural history information, status information, or suggestions: Alberta Ecological InfoService, Alberta Energy Co., Alberta Natural Heritage Information Centre, American Museum of Natural History, Peter Balagus (Axys), Lloyd Bennett, Steve Brechtel (Alberta Environmental Protection), Francis Cook (Canadian Field-Naturalist), Ross Dickson (Canadian Wildlife Service), Andrew Didiuk (Canadian Wildlife Service), Teresa Dolman, Gary Erickson (Alberta Environmental Protection), Express Pipelines Ltd., Eugenia Farrar (University of Iowa), Foothills Pipe Lines Ltd., Les Fuller (Axys), Rob Gardner, Lindsay Giles (Axys), Scott Grindal (Axys), Wayne Harris (Saskatchewan Environment and Resource Management), Helen Schuler Coulee Centre, Ed Hofman (Alberta Environmental Protection), Garry Hornbeck (Wildlife and Company Ltd.), Mike Houser (Express Pipelines Ltd.), Hope Johnson, Michael Klassen, Jane Lancaster (Kestrel Research), Ross MacCullough (Royal Ontario Museum), Bruce McGillivray (Provincial Museum of Alberta), Mike Norton (Alberta Environmental Protection), Rob Owens (Foothills Pipe Lines Ltd. ), Liz Parkin (Biophysical Scientist), Larry Powell (University of Calgary), Provincial Museum of Alberta, Wes Richmond (CFB Suffield), Rick Riddell, Wayne Roberts (University of Alberta), Tony Russell (University of Calgary), Elizabeth Saunders (City of Lethbridge), Bill Sharp, Wayne Smith, Michele Steigerwald (Canadian Museum of Nature), University of Calgary Vertebrate Collection, Ben Velner, Cliff Wallis, Cleve Wershler, Earl Wiltse (Saskatchewan Environment and Resource Management), Jonathan Wright. Preparation of this report was funded by the Wildlife Management Enhancement Program of the Alberta Conservation Association. v TABLE OF CONTENTS PREFACE.......................................................................................................................................iii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ............................................................................................................ iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................................ v INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................... 1 HABITAT ........................................................................................................................................ 1 CONSERVATION BIOLOGY......................................................................................................... 2 DISTRIBUTION ............................................................................................................................. 4 1. Alberta.............................................................................................................................. 4 2. Other Areas ...................................................................................................................... 6 POPULATION SIZE AND TRENDS ............................................................................................. 6 1. Alberta.............................................................................................................................. 6 2. Other Areas ...................................................................................................................... 6 LIMITING FACTORS ..................................................................................................................... 8 1. Habitat Alteration and Destruction .................................................................................. 8 2. Oil and Gas Exploration/Development ............................................................................ 9 3. Road Kills ........................................................................................................................ 9 STATUS DESIGNATIONS ............................................................................................................. 9 1. Alberta.............................................................................................................................. 9 2. Other Areas .................................................................................................................... 10 RECENT MANAGEMENT IN ALBERTA .................................................................................. 10 SYNTHESIS.................................................................................................................................. 10 LITERATURE CITED .................................................................................................................. 12 APPENDIX 1 ................................................................................................................................ 16 vi INTRODUCTION it has been found include unvegetated sand dunes, sand dunes with willow and The Plains Spadefoot (Spea
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